Validation of the French Utrecht Work Engagement Scale and its relationship with personality traits and impulsivity

IntroductionWork engagement is a positive state of mind related to work, characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption. It is measured through the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES), which has shown good psychometric properties across occupational types and languages. Besides, some individuals may more easily experience work engagement than others, suggesting that individual stable tendencies could predict this state of mind.ObjectivesIn this article, we aim to: (1) present the psychometric properties of the French versions of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9 and UWES-17), and (2) assess whether work engagement can be associated with personality traits and impulsivity.MethodFor this purpose, 661 French-speaking workers (M_age = 40.86, SD_age = 12.35) were recruited in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Two hundred and eleven subjects responded to the UWES-17, the Zuckerman-Kuhlman-Aluja Personality Questionnaire (ZKA-PQ) and the UPPS Impulsive Behaviour Scale (UPPS), and 450 subjects responded to the UWES-9 and the NEO-Five-Factor Inventory Revised (NEO-FFI-R).ResultsResults showed that UWES-9 reached better psychometric properties than UWES-17. Moreover, it appeared that individuals who were active, conscientious, emotionally stable, and extroverted were more prone to experience work engagement than others.DiscussionThus, the path to experiencing work engagement seems to differ as a function of personal stable characteristics. Further studies should analyse how personal characteristics interact with working conditions in determining work engagement.     

Conceptualizing and Measuring Engagement: An Analysis of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale

This article analyzes the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES; Schaufeli et al. in J Happiness Stud 3:71?C92, 2002b) on a variety of levels. Study 1 critiques the method by which the original scale was developed, and analyzes a similar sample using both exploratory and, subsequently, confirmatory factor analyses. Study 2 uses three samples to explore the 17-item UWES-17, and the recent shorter version of the scale, the 9-item UWES-9. Factor structures and reliabilities of scores for both scale versions were examined for each sample. Although some cautions are warranted when using the UWES, this research leans toward supporting a multifactorial conceptualization of the construct. Preliminary construct validation of the use of the measures was also established via correlations with other pertinent constructs. Although research on the measure remains sparse, the UWES-9 holds promise as a parsimonious version of the UWES-17 that appears valid in use, appears to yield reliable scores in the samples herein, and also appears to capture the purported three-factor dimensionality of the engagement construct better than does the original UWES-17 version.     

Factorial validity of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) across occupational groups in Norway

Nerstad, C.G.L., Richardsen, A.M. & Martinussen, M. (2009). Factorial validity of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) across occupational groups in Norway. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology. The present study investigated the factorial validity of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) among 1266 participants from ten different occupational groups. Confirmatory factor analyses of the total sample, as well as multi‐group analyses and analyses of each of the ten occupational groups separately, indicated that a three‐dimensional model of both the UWES‐17 and the short version, UWES‐9, provided a better fit to the data than a one‐ and two‐dimensional model. The results of multi‐group analyses and analyses of each of the groups separately, indicated that with a few exceptions, the three‐factor model of work engagement provided the best fit. Results indicated factorial invariance and the internal consistencies were acceptable. The fit of the UWES‐9 was slightly better than the UWES‐17. It is concluded that the Norwegian short version may be recommended over the UWES‐17.     

Dimensions of social support in the experience of work engagement in middle age: A Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 Study

So far, the relationship between the various dimensions of social support and work engagement has not been widely examined in the literature. In this study, we examined the relationship of social support at work (from a colleague or supervisor) and social support in one’s private life (from a spouse, relative or friend) with various dimensions of work engagement (vigor, dedication and absorption). The participants (N = 5,259–5,376, 46 years-old, 52.7% women) came from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 study. Social support was evaluated with the Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ), and work engagement was assessed with a short version of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9). The data were analyzed using linear regression analyses. The results showed that high social support at work (p < 0.001) and in one’s private life (p < 0.001) were associated with higher total work engagement, higher vigor, higher dedication, and higher absorption. These findings were adjusted for gender, marital status, education and occupational status. The results were essentially unchanged when they were additionally adjusted for job strain and effort-reward imbalance. To conclude, our findings indicate that the experience of overall social support may play a role in the experience of work engagement.     

The relationship between employees’ experience of performance management and work engagement within a South African organisation

The study investigated the relationship between employees’ experience of performance management and work engagement. Participants were a convenience sample of employed adults (N=202; females=59%, middle management?=?48%, White?=?54%, tenure more than 9 years?=?48%) in an organisation in the vehicle and asset-based finance industry. They completed the Performance Management Questionnaire (PMQ) and Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES). Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the proportion of variance of work engagement that is explained by employees’ experience of performance management. Results revealed that only empowerment significantly predicted work engagement. These findings suggest that when employees experience performance management as empowering, they are also likely to have higher levels of work engagement.     

Occupational differences in work engagement: A longitudinal study among eight occupational groups in Norway

The aim of the present study was to explore occupational differences in the experience of engagement both with regard to differences in the level of work engagement as well as in the predicting value of different antecedent variables. Multigroup latent mean analysis was performed on eight different occupational groups in Norway (lawyers, physicians, nurses, teachers, church ministers, bus drivers, and people working in advertising and information technology; N = 3,475). Tests for factorial invariance supported the use of the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory scale across occupational groups and that the latent means were comparable across the groups. Results indicated significant occupational differences in the experience of vigor and dedication. The lawyers reported the most vigor and the church ministers the most dedication. Least vigor was reported among the teachers and the advertising group reported to be least dedicated. Cross‐lagged multigroup structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis suggested there are different processes behind the development of engagement across occupations. Visualization of how some occupations cluster or differ from each other is important as it might engender theory building and further hypotheses testing.     

Examining the Psychometric Properties of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale in Two Spanish Multi‐occupational Samples

The aim of this study was to provide some evidence of reliability and validity of the 15‐item Spanish version of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) between two multi‐occupational samples. In two different studies, 525 human services employees (study 1; males = 233; females = 292) and 409 multi‐occupational employees (study 2; males = 179; females = 230) completed the Spanish UWES. In study 1, our results revealed satisfactory levels of reliability for each subscale. In addition, the confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the three‐factor model fitted better than the one‐factor model and supported the theoretical three‐factor structure (vigor, dedication, and absorption). Furthermore, results from the multi‐sample analysis found strict factorial invariance of the Spanish UWES across gender, suggesting that the UWES factors show the same composition and interpretation in both groups. In study 2, our results once again confirmed the same three‐factor structure for the Spanish UWES. We found support for theoretically proposed two‐factor model including: (1) emotional exhaustion and depersonalization and (2) all three dimensions of engagement plus personal accomplishment. We also found evidence of convergent, discriminant, and incremental validity with respect to burnout, life satisfaction, and perceived stress. In short, our results provide empirical support for structural validity of the Spanish UWES in multi‐occupational workers.     

Reliability and concurrent validation of the IPIP Big-Five factor markers in China: Consistencies in factor structure between Internet-obtained heterosexual and homosexual samples

Previous studies have suggested the cross-cultural generalizability of a 5-factor structure for personality traits. In this article, we analyzed the utility of 2 versions (100-item and 50-item) of the IPIP Big-Five factor markers in both heterosexual (N = 633) and homosexual (N = 437) samples in China. Factor analysis within versions showed that both versions of these IPIP measures showed clear 5-factor orthogonal structures that were nearly identical to the American structure in both subject samples. The reliabilities of the five factors were quite high except for the 50-item measure of Agreeableness. The part-whole correlations between the 100-item and 50-item factors were high, as were the factor congruence coefficients between the heterosexual and the homosexual samples. Both versions of the IPIP Big-Five factor markers were strongly correlated with the scales from the Big-Five Inventory (BFI: John, Donahue, & Kentle, 1991), thus providing some concurrent validation in a Chinese context.     

Daily self-management and employee work engagement

The present study adopts a bottom-up approach to work engagement by examining how self-management is related to employees' work engagement on a daily basis. Specifically, we hypothesized that on days that employees use more self-management strategies, they report higher resources at work and in turn, are more vigorous, dedicated, and absorbed in their work (i.e., engaged) on these days. We tested this hypothesis in a sample of 72 maternity nurses who filled out an online diary for 5 days (N = 360 data points). In line with our hypotheses, results of multilevel structural equation modeling analyses showed that daily self-management was positively related to the resourcefulness of the daily work environment (i.e., more skill variety, feedback, and developmental opportunities) and consequently, to employees' daily work engagement. However, contrary to our expectations, the measurement model showed that two of the five included self-management strategies (i.e., self-reward and self-punishment) loaded onto a separate factor and were unrelated to all job resources. The findings contribute to our understanding of employees' role in regulating their own daily work engagement.     

Principal self-efficacy and work engagement: assessing a Norwegian Principal Self-Efficacy Scale

One purpose of the present study was to develop and test the factor structure of a multidimensional and hierarchical Norwegian Principal Self-Efficacy Scale (NPSES). Another purpose of the study was to investigate the relationship between principal self-efficacy and work engagement. Principal self-efficacy was measured by the 22-item NPSES. Work engagement was measured by a modified version of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES). The participants in the study were 300 principals randomly drawn from the population of Norwegian principals. Data were collected by means of an electronic questionnaire. Both the NPSES and the UWES were investigated through confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) before two structural equation models were tested. Both models specified principal self-efficacy as an exogenous variable and work engagement as an endogenous variable. The data were analyzed by means of a SEM analysis for latent variables using the AMOS 18 program. Three different models of NPSES were tested. Both a first- and second-order CFA confirmed that principal self-efficacy constitutes eight dimensions. Furthermore, both structural models had an acceptable fit to data and revealed that principal self-efficacy was positively related to work engagement. The results of the study are discussed together with limitations and suggestions for further research.     

Preferences for Life-Prolonging Medical Treatments and Deference to the Will of God

We defined and measured a dimension of religiosity frequently invoked in end-of-life (EOL) research—deference to God’s Will (GW)—and examined its relationship to preferences for life-prolonging treatments. In a 35-min telephone interview, 304 older men and women (60 +) were administered the 5-item GW scale, sociodemographic questions, three attitude items regarding length of life, and measures of two health indices, depression, and life-prolonging treatment preferences. The GW scale demonstrated internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = .94) and predictive and discriminant validity. Higher scores indicative of greater deference to GW were associated with stronger life-prolonging treatment preferences in poor-prognosis scenarios. Implications for the role of religiosity in medical decision-making are discussed.     

A Psychometric Analysis of the Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale—Parent Version in a Clinical Sample

The Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale—Parent Version (RCADS-P) is a 47-item parent-report questionnaire of youth anxiety and depression, with scales corresponding to the DSM-IV categories of Separation Anxiety Disorder, Social Phobia, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Panic Disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). The RCADS-P is currently the only parent-report questionnaire that concurrently assesses youth symptomatology of individual anxiety disorders as well as depression in accordance with DSM-IV nosology. The present study examined the psychometric properties of the RCADS-P in a large (N = 490), clinic-referred sample of youths. The RCADS-P demonstrated favorable psychometric properties, including high internal consistency, convergent/divergent validity, as well as strong discriminant validity—evidencing an ability to discriminate between anxiety and depressive disorders, as well as between the targeted anxiety disorders. Support for the DSM-related six-factor RCADS-P structure was also evidenced. This structure demonstrated superior fit to a recently suggested alternative to the DSM-IV classification of anxiety and affective disorders—namely, the MDD/GAD “distress” factor.     

Measuring adolescents’ beliefs in conspiracy theories: Development and validation of the Adolescent Conspiracy Beliefs Questionnaire (ACBQ)

Four studies (total n = 961) developed and validated the Adolescent Conspiracy Beliefs Questionnaire (ACBQ). Initial items were developed in collaboration with teachers. An exploratory factor analysis (Study 1, n = 208, aged 11–14) and a student focus group (N = 3, aged 11) enabled us to establish the factor structure of a 9-item scale. This was replicated via confirmatory factor analysis in Study 2 (N = 178, aged 11–17), and the scale displayed good convergent (i.e., relationship with paranoia and mistrust) and discriminant validity (i.e., no relationship with extraversion). Study 3a (N = 257) further tested convergent validity with a sample of 18-year-olds (i.e., relationship with adult-validated measures of conspiracy beliefs) and demonstrated strong test–retest reliability. Study 3b (N = 318) replicated these findings with a mixed-age adult sample. The ACBQ will allow researchers to explore the psychological antecedents and consequences of conspiracy thinking in young populations.     

Consensual and behavioral validity of a measure of adaptive individual differences dimensions in human motivation

Data from three sources—an initial self sample (N = 108) and a friend sample (N = 103) and relative sample (N = 103) recruited by self sample participants—were used to test the consensual and behavioral validity of new individual differences measures of 15 dimensions of motivation represented in the assessment of individual motives-questionnaire (AIM-Q). AIM-Q scores for all three samples converged and hypotheses of their predicted relationships with reports of the occurrence and frequency of a variety of behavior criteria of some importance were supported in most cases. These results support the utility of the AIM-Q as a new measure of motives in purposeful human behavior.     

Working memory and fluid intelligence as predictors of work engagement—Testing preliminary models

This study aimed to investigate the relationships between working memory capacity, fluid intelligence (Gf), and work engagement within the framework of the job demands–resources theory. Multioccupational employees (N = 175 in Study 1 and N = 383 in Study 2) completed sets of Gf, complex span, and n‐back tests, along with job resources and work engagement surveys. Structural equation modeling with latent variables and bootstrapping procedures revealed that complex span was indirectly positively related to work engagement via job resources, and n‐back was indirectly positively related to work engagement via job complexity. Moreover, the one common factor g composed of Gf, n‐back, and complex span was positively indirectly related to work engagement via job resources and job complexity. These results highlight that the cognitive capacities of employees should be given greater consideration as cognitive personal resources in models aimed at accounting for employee work engagement.     

Psychometrics properties of the Swansea Muscularity Attitudes Questionnaire (SMAQ)

The psychometric soundness of the Swansea Muscularity Attitudes Questionnaire (SMAQ) was examined using two independent samples of Canadian male post-secondary students (Ns = 250 and 310, respectively). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses suggested that the final 19-item version of the SMAQ is represented by three latent constructs, which we have labeled: intention to become more muscular (eight-items), positive attributes of muscularity (nine-items), and engagement in muscle-building activities (two-items). Alpha coefficients for the intention and positive subscales were very good (i.e., range = .86–.92). Correlation coefficients between the two-items comprising the engagement subscale also suggest that they can be combined into a composite measure (rs = .70 [study 1] and .58 [study 2]). Various tests of criterion-related and construct validity were conducted, with results indicating that the SMAQ subscales are valid indicants of the drive for muscularity.     

Persistent pursuit of need-satisfying goals leads to increased happiness: A 6-month experimental longitudinal study

University-based community members (N = 181) participated in a four-wave, 6-month longitudinal experiment designed to increase treatment participants’ happiness levels. Participants were randomly assigned to set goals either to improve their life circumstances (comparison condition) or to increase their feelings of autonomy, competence, or relatedness in life (treatment conditions). We hypothesized that sustained gains in happiness would be observed only in the three treatment conditions, and that even these gains would last only when there was continuing goal engagement. Results supported these predictions and the sustainable happiness model on which they were based (Lyubomirsky et al. in Rev Gen Psychol 9:111–131, 2005). Furthermore, participants with initial positive attitudes regarding happiness change obtained larger benefits. We conclude that maintained happiness gains are possible, but that they require both “a will and a proper way” (Lyubomirsky et al. in Becoming happier takes both a will and a proper way: two experimental longitudinal interventions to boost well-being, 2009).     

Young managers’ drive to thrive: A personal work goal approach to burnout and work engagement

This study approaches young managers’ occupational well-being through their work-related goal pursuit. The main aim was to identify content categories of personal work goals and investigate their associations with background factors, goal appraisals, burnout, and work engagement. The questionnaire data consisted of 747 young Finnish managers (23-35 years; M = 31 years) who were mostly men (85.5%). Seven work-related content categories were found on the basis of qualitative data analysis: (1) competence goals (30.5%), (2) progression goals (23.7%), (3) well-being goals (15.2%), (4) job change goals (13.7%), (5) job security goals (7.4%), (6) organizational goals (5.6%), and (7) financial goals (3.9%). ANCOVA analyses, where goal appraisals and significant background factors were controlled for, indicated that organizational goals were related to low burnout and the highest level of work engagement, whereas well-being and job change goals were related to higher burnout and lower work engagement. The study shows that the contents of young managers’ work-related goals can contribute to the understanding of individual differences in occupational well-being.     

Review of Interventions to Improve Family Engagement and Retention in Parent and Child Mental Health Programs

Engaging and retaining families in mental health prevention and intervention programs is critically important to insure maximum public health impact. We evaluated randomized-controlled trials testing methods to improve family engagement and retention in child mental health programs published since 1980 (N = 17). Brief, intensive engagement interventions in which providers explicitly addressed families’ practical (e.g. schedules, transportation) and psychological (e.g. family members’ resistance, beliefs about the treatment process) barriers as they entered treatment were effective in improving engagement in early sessions. The few interventions found to produce long-term impact on engagement and retention integrated motivational interviewing, family systems, and enhanced family stress and coping support strategies at multiple points throughout treatment. Few interventions have been tested in the context of prevention programs. There are promising approaches to increasing engagement and retention; they should be replicated and used as a foundation for future research in this area.     

A Person-Centered Approach to Subjective Well-Being

Rooted in Diener’s (Psychol Bull 95:542–575, 1984) three-component model of subjective well-being (SWB), the present work employed a person-centered approach to studying SWB based on Shmotkin’s (Rev Gen Psychol 9:291–325, 2005) dynamic systems framework. Within-individual configurations of life satisfaction (LS), positive affect (PA), and negative affect (NA) were explored using cluster analysis. Five distinct SWB configurations replicated within and across two samples (N = 756 first-year undergraduates; N = 550 community adults). A substantial number of participants reported a profile indicative of “high SWB” (high LS, frequent PA, infrequent NA). Consistent with expectations, these individuals were characterized by elevated mental, physical, and interpersonal functioning. In contrast, people with a “low SWB” profile reported the greatest dysfunction. Across the five clusters, however, adaptive functioning was not unique to individuals reporting a high SWB profile, nor was dysfunction unique to people characterized by a low SWB configuration. Results are discussed in terms of compensation and strain processes hypothesized by Shmotkin (2005). Implications for future research on SWB are considered.